The day has finally arrived. Angel City FC has stepped foot on the pitch. Perhaps not the dramatic result we wanted, the game was brilliant and the moment HUGE.
But like most Angel City fans, I've been following them for the last two years. Their first game was almost an added bonus. They're my NWSL team and before today, I hadn't even seen them play. Want to understand a bit more about what makes them special? Here's 10 reasons to get behind ACFC:
1. Purpose-led brand
They're a purpose-led brand first. I watched a great interview 18 months ago with Julie Uhrman, club president and co-founder, who talked about the need to lead with brand and purpose first, the physical game second. They’ve defined their brand, relationships, investment strategy et al based on their overall mission to ignite higher expectations on and off the field. They are a global brand built from a local product. They describe themselves as at the intersection of passion, purpose and profitability which was a really great way to explain the challenge sports brands on a whole face -creating inspiring content, as a force for good, whilst still being profitable.
2. Women at the helm
They are predominately founded, funded and led by women. From world-class sports people like Serena Williams, Uzo Aduba and Mia Hamm, through to high-profile celebrities like Natalie Portman and Eva Longoria, Angel City FC has had the backing of champions. All of whom share the goal of shifting football culture around the world. With this kind of support, these celebs can use their platform to advocate for the game, equality, loyalty and ultimately, brand growth.
3. Performance is not important (right now)
They launched their brand in 2020, knowing full well they wouldn't play a single second of football until 2022. This gave them two years to build a remarkable fan following, put out great content, build a powerful culture, recruit the best players and sell 16,000 season tickets!
4. Community is number one
Their roots are grown from the streets of LA, and they're proud of that. They stand with their community and what they gain from the pitch, they put back into the streets including 10% of all sponsorship dollars. They put on community events, fund female entrepreneurs, provide sports bras so girls can get into sport, replenish school gardens and have created their own 'Soar Fellowship'. Not only that, they use their voice for good and partner with local companies that need that platform. They really are bigger than the game.
5. An inclusive and relatable brand
ACFC is inclusive of all cultures. Everyone is welcome. LA's Mexican and Spanish roots shine through with all branded messaging being in both Spanish and English. Not only that, you can expect to see a fully diverse board, team, coaching staff, fans and community impact plan.
6. A considered design
To ensure ACFC represented LA right, they worked with supporters and the local community to design their brand. The result being a colour palette of asphalt (the urban LA streets), armour (strength of the team) and sel rosa (a pink hue, unique to the club and representing the optimism of LA as well as a nod to their world-famous sunrises and sunsets). Their logo has been designed with storytelling at the heart - every single element considered. See a great summary below:
7. A fashion product as well as a playing kit
New sports teams often have to put up with messy kits thanks to loud sponsor logos and low budgets. But with their strong financial backing and more so, with the understanding that kits can be a popular product for non-fans too (just Google Leicester City's famous pink away kit or Nigeria's RWC jersey), ACFC have created a fashionable, clean, wearable kit that people have been scrambling for since it went on sale (yesterday!). You can buy yours here
8. An sustainable kit
Unlike their counterparts, especially in the male game, they sell their merch as unisex or for women. So often there aren't fan kits made that fit the female body. And sometimes our boobs simply don't fit in the mens version! So if you're after a baggier fit, still with the women's body in mind, you can grab the unisex version. Fancy a more flattering shape, grab the women's. Oh, and did I mention their kits are made from recycled material too?
9. Supporter clubs get the support
They give their supporters the podium they deserve. From the beginning, supporters clubs were created as the excitement for LA's newest women's football club built. And Angel City FC wanted to support them from the beginning too. You can find out all about the supporters clubs on their site where they have their own dedicated space.
10. The players will be alright
Even with a backing like ACFC, it's no surprise that the players will be paid significantly less than their male counterparts unless changes to the business structure are made. That's why ACFC created an approach that could change women's sport for ever. 1% of net ticketing revenue from all of Angel City’s home games will be divided equally amongst each player on the ACFC roster. In return, players are asked to support marketing initiatives to drive ticket sales on their own social media channels. The players in turn get more social media following, opening up opportunities for their own business ventures. It's a win, win, win!
Are you following Angel City this season? Have you been for the last two years? We'd love to hear more. But ultimately, let's go ACFC!!
📸All images owned by Angel City FC
Follow Angel City FC here:
Or watch future ACFC games on Twitch
Komentarze